Always and Forever
by Lie-In-The-Sound
Summary: The Notebook Nathan and Haley style
1. Default Chapter

**Always and Forever**

A loud thump awakens me from my slumber; I raise my head a natural reaction to the sound. It takes me a few seconds to register for my head is still fuzzy from the few minutes of sleep I have had in the last three days. I realize the source of the noise and bend down to pick up the book that must have slipped out of my hands and place it back in my lap. Now I am fully awake and pain shoots up my back to my neck I find that trying to take naps in a chair doesn't work as good as it use to in my younger years.

I turn my head and look out the big picture window that my chair is placed by. The sun is starting to set across the beautiful lake the orange and pinks spiraling together to forum a mesmerizing color. I stair at the scene a long moment to get my mind off the pain that has come more frequently with my old age.

I stare out the window a few seconds longer and than turn what little I can in my chair and let my eyes rest upon the sleeping figure in the bed. I decide to get up and stretch my tired muscles. I stand up using the chair as balance and place book, notebook really on the little table ahead of me.

I look at the bed once more before I decide to go and get me a drink of water I leave the room in hopes that my legs want give out on me. The hall is quiet as the room I was just in which is odd because the hall is usually crowded with people coming in and out to visit their family or friends. But there is no one in ight which is a good thing I am not much on crowds. It takes me a while to walk down the hall to the water fountain by the elevators. I pass rooms that are a lot like the one I just left quiet their habitant sleeping, dreaming peaceful dreams, and I pass doors that are loud with the sound of TVs and radios or their visitors. I make it to the fountain my dry mouth anticipating the cold liquid that will soon fill it. I bend down my mouth opening slightly to take the clear goodness as it comes out of the spout when I fill something pulling on my leg. I raise my body and look down to see a little boy.

He has to be about 4 because he looks around the age of my youngest grandchild. "Yes" I say assuming he wants something from me.

I hope he isn't lost my mind grumbles. I like children that is not the problem but if this little boy is lost this means I am going to have to help him find his parents or parent which means I will have to do more walking than I think my legs could handle.

The little boy doesn't say anything at first but his small round face brightens with a smile and points to the fountain. "I wantz sum water please" still pointing. I look at him and than back up to the water found realizing his meaning. This little boy wants some water, but is far from reaching the top. I look back down at him nod with a smile has the boy begins to giggle at what I don't know.

I bend down and pick him up and hold him over the top so he can get him some water it seems like he is drinking the whole supply before he lifts his head and states "Alls done". I set him back down where he lifts his hand to his face and wipes the excess water that his running down his mouth. "Thank you sir" he says putting his hand out I assume to shake my own. My face breaks into a smile at the little boy I take my hand out of my pocket and push it towards him which he takes and shakes. Before I can ask the little boy his name I hear a young woman call out for the little boy. He thanks me again and runs down the hall toward the sound. I watch him as he disappears down the hall than I turn around and get the drink of water I intended on getting from the start.

After a long drink of water I turn making my way back down the hall. After seems like forever I reach the room. That has been my home for the three days. I am starting to get use to it but at first I must say I was not a happy camper. I hate hospitals their rooms seem so empty so impersonal it is the same as the next. The walls are a stark white, with the exception of a few small paintings of birds. There is small brown table by the bed which holds a small lamp, a tan telephone, and a plastic pink water jug. Across the room is the small tan chair and tiny table by the window where I was resting before. The only thing that makes this room tolerable is the picture window. You can't see this view from any other room in this dreaded place. That's when I saw it I knew she would love it. Even though she wasn't awake to see the beautiful scene just outside of these walls I knew she could feel it which made it alright for me. I walk a few shorts steps to wear the chair is an pull it towards the bed where she rests.

Sleeping soundly; unaware of the world going on around her. Her mouth is open slightly puffs of air coming out each second seeing this makes me smile. Along with the smile come memories, memories of the past 58 years of seeing her sleep. I grab her hand still as tiny as the day we met of course it has changed like the rest of her over the years. Her skin is no longer tight; her hair is no longer a light shade of Auburn, her face is no longer wrinkle free quite the opposite. But her eyes are still as brown and deep as they always were, I am still able to look at her and feel as if I am looking right into her soul.

I bring her hand to my lips and in twine our fingers. Looking at her like this makes my heart break I feel she want last much longer and it kills me to think I may have to go on in this world without her. I don't know what I will do without her, someone to help me, keep me in line. I can feel my eyes began to water with the thought, I rest my head on her stomach and inhale the sent of Vanilla she still smells as sweet as she did when she was 17. I close my eyes letting the memories take over I let my mind bring me back to a time when the world was a different place, when we were young, when we were filled such love that we though that was all the we needed.


	2. Once Apon a Memorie

**AN: Thanks for your feedback glad someone likes my story**

** Chap 1**

I lift my head from its resting place on the bed next to her, our hands still entangled as she sleeps. Her position the same as when I dozed off the only difference is her beautiful face is now facing away from my line of view. I raise my body to a sitting position in the chair my back muscles achy from my second nap of the day. Who knew when you got this age all the naps that you would take.

I take a moment to stare at her while she sleeps. My lips drift upwards to form a half smile as my mind races with memories new and old. Her face looks so peaceful and content and it makes me wonder what she is dreaming. I stand up and make my way back to the window in which I was resting at earlier. The sun as now fully set giving its self away to the night. Now there are more stars than one man can count and a full moon that covers the lake like a blanket.

My mind slips into the past as my eyes take in the site before me. I go back to the night I proposed to Haley. It was a night like this the moon full and bright dancing over the water. After we had a nice dinner I had taken her down to the lake. I had taken her there because I knew it was her favorite place I would sometimes find her there her legs hanging over the pier her feet resting in the water a glass of lemonade by her side and a book in her hands. It was the middle of April the air was chilly but not so much it was a typical April night in North Carolina. I had set a blanket and a little hand held radio in a little boat I often used to go fishing in early on Sunday mornings. The boat wasn't that big but I was sure it was sturdy enough to hold us both. Oh boy was I wrong. Of course I knew when Haley saw the boat she would protest. She knew the boat wasn't going to hold both of us. But after what seemed like hours of assuring her that it would she relented and joined me in the boat. It rocked a little and I could tell she was ready to bolt at any second.

I knew this is where I wanted to do this but if she got out it would be ruined. I quickly grabbed the tiny radio at the bottom of the boat and tuned it to one of the few stations it would pick up. As soon as the song reached my ears I knew this wouldn't be such a disaster after all. Her face that was just full of worry and discomfort soon turned thought full as she listened to the song playing on the tiny box radio. As the words of I'll be seeing you reached her ears her face turned into a big smile as she began to sing.

I began to row us away from the pier at that moment before she had the chance to change her mind. Finally I was satisfied with a location I stopped placing the ores inside the boat. The song still softly placing on the radio but I couldn't care less I was mesmerized at the beauty sitting before me. Her auburn hair pulled up in a loose bun a few soft curls gracing her shoulders. As her head swayed back and fourth her lips parted just slightly as she sang along with the song. I didn't realize the song was over until I hear her mumble my name I lift my head to look at her and when I do I can't help but take a sharp intake of breath. The moon's rays cast on her porcelain skin her dark brown eyes boar in to mine. Those eyes that I love so much, the eyes that tell me when she is sad, when she is happy, when she is mad at me. They eyes that let me look deep inside her soul. When I hear my name again I shake my heard trying to clear it from the thought of her that are always looming. She asks me the reason for this little trip out on the lake. I tell her I wanted to just be with her at a place that brings us both comfort. She smiles again her eyes casting down at her hands in her lap.

It is now or never. I take a ragged breath and reach out to take her hand intending to tell her how beautiful she is, how much she means to me, how much I love her. But I can't find the words to express it so I find my self making up small talk and ramblings. When I decided to just do it, Will you marry me slips out of my lips before I can stop it and she looks at me once again. And for once since I met her I can not read her eyes. I can't tell what she is thinking and I start to get worried. She opens her mouth to speak but instead begins to laugh.

With all the thoughts running in my head with what she would say this was never expected. I ask her what is so funny which only makes her laugh harder. Now this really wasn't what I was expecting. Soon her laughing dies down when she notices that I am not laughing with her.

"I could have sworn you just asked me to marry you" she says eyes bright and shinning.

"Well I did so what do you say are you going to marry me or sit there and laugh about it all night"? My voice gives out more anger than I intended to give.

Her smile fades as she is quick to apologize.

"Your series" she asks her eyes wide.

"Yeah I am series you think I brought you out here as a joke" I say my sarcastic side starting to take over.

"Oh god" her face is once again filled with pure joy as she screams which I can barley comprehend before she leaps up from her seat in front of me and jumps into my arms I feel the boat sway and before I know it or can stop it the boat turns over landing us both into the lake. After a few seconds out heads pop to the surface of the water our hands grasping for each other.

My hand grasps her waist to make sure she stays next to me. My lips are opened ready to ask if she is alright before her hands come to wrap around my neck in the water.

"Yes" she mumbles bringing her we lips to rest upon mine.

"Yes" I questioned

"Yes I will marry you… Oh god yes" her lips crash against mine once more. We soon tare away from each other when we realize that we are still in the water.

She rests her forehead against mine she doesn't say anything for a while our bodies just float for a few seconds until I hear her laughter fill the air.

"I told you that this boat wasn't sturdy enough"

We both begin to laugh until I kiss her again which cuts off all laughter.

"Let's see if we can get this boat turned back over and head back to the house" I say after she finished leaving kisses all over my face.

It takes us only a few short seconds to turn the boat back over I get her safely into the boat then me and row us back to the pier. We get out of the boat and run back up to the house.

That was just one of the many memories I have burned in my brain of our life together. I tare my eyes away from the window my and rest them upon the book I had earlier. I run my fingers over the worn leather and pick it up to study it more closely.

I turn and make my way back to the chair once again and sit down. I open it to the first page. I look at her sleeping once more time before I grab my eyes glasses from my shirt pocket and slip them on.

I know she is asleep but I know she can still hear me.

So I begin to read as I have hundreds of time before

"It was the night of the Carnival…."


End file.
